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Robert Frost Timeline
Robert Frost Born
Robert Lee Frost is born in San Francisco to William Prescott Frost, Jr., and Isabelle Moodie.
Father Dies
Frost's father, journalist William Prescott Frost, Jr., dies of tuberculosis. With no money to support themselves, Frost, his mother, and his younger sister Jeanie move across the country to Massachusetts, to be cared for by his paternal grandparents.
High School Graduation
Frost graduates as co-valedictorian of Lawrence High School in Lawrence, Massachusetts. He enrolls at Dartmouth College, but returns home after only a semester, to teach and work at various jobs.
First Published Poem
Frost's first published poem, "My Butterfly: An Elegy," appears in the New York Independent. He receives fifteen dollars for his work.
Marries Elinor Miriam White
Frost marries his Elinor Miriam White, his classmate and co-valedictorian at Lawrence High School.
Elliott Frost Born
Robert and Elinor Frost's first child, a son named Elliott, is born.
Leaves Harvard
Frost drops out of Harvard before he can get a degree, and moves back to Lawrence in order to support his growing family.
Lesley Frost Born
The couple's second child, and first daughter, Lesley is born. Lesley is later one of only two Frost children to outlive their father.
Elliott Frost Dies
Robert Frost's son Elliott dies of cholera, just two months shy of his fourth birthday.
Frost Takes Up Farming
The Frost family moves to a poultry farm in Derry, New Hampshire, purchased for Robert by his paternal grandfather. A month later, Frost's mother Isabelle dies of cancer.
Carol Frost Born
The Frosts family's third child, son Carol, is born.
Irma Frost Born
Daughter Irma, Frost's fourth child, is born.
Marjorie Frost Born
Daughter Marjorie is born. She is the Frost family's fifth child.
Starts Teaching
Frost becomes an English teacher at Pinkerton Academy in Derry, a job he holds for the next five years.
Elinor Bettina Frost Born
Elinor gives birth to daughter Elinor Bettina, who sadly dies just days later. She is their sixth and final child.
Frost Gives Up Farming
Robert Frost calls it quits and sells the poultry farm. He takes a job teaching English at New Hampshire Normal School in Plymouth, New Hampshire.
Frosts Move to England
The Frost family moves to the United Kingdom in September. They live first in Scotland and then outside London. Frost befriends several literary notables, including Edward Thomas and Ezra Pound.
First Book Published
A Boy's Will, Frost's first book of poetry, is published in England. (The American edition appears two years later.)
Return to America
The Frosts move back to the United States as World War I begins. They settle on another farm, this time in Franconia, New Hampshire.
Amherst College
Frost begins the first of three teaching stints at Amherst College, which take place 1917-1920, 1923-1925, and 1926-1938.
Moves to Vermont
The Frosts move to a home named Stone House in Shaftsbury, Vermont. They keep the Franconia farm as a summer home.
Bread Loaf School
Frost spends the first of 42 summers lecturing at the Bread Loaf School of English at Middlebury College, at the mountain campus in Ripton, Vermont.
First Pulitzer
Robert Frost wins his first Pulitzer Prize for the poetry collection New Hampshire. It includes his famous poem "Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening."
Sister Dies
Frost's sister Jeanie dies in a mental hospital at the age of 52.
Marjorie Frost Dies
Frost's daughter Marjorie dies of puerperal fever after childbirth, at the age of 29.
Wins Another Pulitzer
Frost wins his third Pulitzer Prize for the poetry collection A Further Range.
Elinor Frost Dies
Elinor Miriam White Frost, the poet's wife of 42 years, dies at the age of 65 from a heart attack.
Wins Poetry Awards
The Ralph Waldo Emerson Fellow in Poetry at Harvard and teaches there until 1943.
Carol Frost Dies
Frost's 38-year-old son Carol commits suicide.
Cambridge
Frost buys a house and moves to Cambridge, Massachusetts—his home for the rest of his life.
Wins Last Pulitzer
Frost wins his fourth and final Pulitzer Prize for the poetry collection A Witness Tree. In September, he begins a six-year appointment as the George Ticknor Fellow in the Humanities at Dartmouth College.
Frost Reads at Inauguration
At the age of 86, Robert Frost reads at the inauguration of President John F. Kennedy. Blinded by the harsh sunlight, he is unable to read "Dedication," the poem he prepared for the event. Instead, he recites his poem "The Gift Outright" from memory.
Frost Meets Khrushchev
At President Kennedy's urging, Frost accepts an invitation to meet Nikita Khrushchev, the head of the Soviet Union. The two discuss U.S.-Russia relations at Frost's bedside, since he fell ill on the trip.
Robert Frost Dies
Robert Frost dies in Boston at the age of 88 following complications from prostate surgery. He is buried at the Old Bennington Cemetery in Bennington, Vermont.
